Signaling apparatus.



JLANDRN. SIGNALING APPARATUS. APPLIOA-TION FILED JAN.26, 1909.

' Patented sept.8,1914.

J 4 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

A l' Q44 A (l 1 Ohm/L il, Wfomw Patented Sept. 8, 1914n 4 SHEETS-SHEET2.

9. 0 9 l 1. l l I I l I I l l l I |I S6. l I 1 1 l 1| W2 .AN. NRA ,BAJRWD DAUu NGN l AMW AAH wm P P A A ANDRBN SIGNALING APPARATUS.APPLIUATION FILED Muze', 1909. 1,1 09,950, Patented Sept. 8, 1914sHEBTs-SHBBT 3.

e 'Il ill.

A. ANDREN. SIGNALING APPARATUS APPLIUATION FILED JAN. 26, 1909.

1,109,950. Patented Sept. 8, 1914.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 4.

v @Zwaan/02 @ff/cine s s 61's; @aiya/.SV ne/:eu

UNITED sTATEs PATENT orrica.

y AUGUST ANDIizN, or BROOKLYN, NEW Yoan, AssIGNoa, BY MEsNE ASSIGNMENTS,

TIoN or ILLINoIs signaling apparatus, more particularly"de scribed aselectric signaling apparatus for elevators, and known in the latter artas flash signals.7

One of the objects is te provide` means l *whereby*` a signal'once-given by awaiting person remains in force until the person hasbeen takenas a' passenger. A further object .is` whereby an elevator carmay pass a floor without disturbing any .signal already sent from thesaid floor.

. A still further -object is to prov-ide means whereby no action of acar operator is necessaryt maintain the existing condition of any givenfloor signals'wlien his car passes ,25 the-floor without stopping.

A'further object' is to provide means *fo-r automatically restoring thesignal system to normal or inactive position when an elevator car'stopsat a floor from which a sig- S'O-nal has been given.

For the attainment of these ends andthe accomplishment of other new anduseful ob- 'ects, my invention consists in the `features ofA novelty inthe construction,.combination and arrangement of the severalpartsheredescribed, and.

.claimed inthe appended claims.

inafter more completely It frequently occurs that it is inexpedient fora car operator to'stop 'the car for every 40 signal, and it has beenfound necessary to rovidel means for suspension of the restorfyingaaction'when a car operator passes a floor without attending to thesignal.

One im,- provement herein described consists ob a' '45 means ofselective restoration, which consists in keeping normally open thecircuit 1 which.includes the common wire of the restoring magnets, untilthe stop signal receivesoperative attention from a: car 'op- .50 erator,and then automatically closing the restoring `magnet circuits by'theaction.of the car operator taking on passengers. y In the accompanyingdrawings, Figure'l is a -diagramii iati c arrangement lof 'aflashsIGNALING APPARATUS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

to pro-vide means cars in thesame installation.y

` T ELEVATOR SUPPLY @L REPAIR COMPANY, 0F CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, A- CORPORA-Patented sept. s, 1914.

4 Appiieation ined January 2c, 19.09. seriai No. 474,275.

signal system embodying' my selective restoration device; Fig.' 2 is adiagrammatic arrangement of the same, including a supplementary sourceof current supply and motors with control system for operating'theelevator cars; and Figs. '3 to 8, inclusive, areA yvarious devices forautomatically closing restoring magnet circuits in my selectiverestoration system. Switch 63 in Fig. '2 is also such a switch. Figs. 9and 10 are diagrams of parts of the system. l y

Referring to Fig. 1, four floors of an installation o f two elevatorsare shown with corresp ondiiig up and down. push-button i switches ,Band B', and up and down ioor lamps A and A. The equipment foreachelevator' car is identical, -hence the descripi tion of one vwillsuiiice ,for any,number of Each car C is provided with a commutatordevice, com. prising strip contacts J, J', segmental contacts K, K', andsliding contacts T moving in accordance with the movement ofthe car.Tlie'dir'ectional switches 11 and 12' also di- ',rectly' associated withthe'coinmutator device are automatically operated bythe up or downmovement of the car to their respective up or down positions.

to the contacts 14, 15,'therebycompleting a circuit to the .car signal4lamp c. Restoring The magnet N when `energized,.dr aws up the contactbar 13 magnets' R 'areladapted to return the Apushbuttonswitches totheir normal or y, inactive position. When a push-button Bor B" isoperated, 'the'..movable contact 3 16 .connects with the fixed contact:19, and is-held' in p ace by the armature memberf18, whichl lattermember is subject to` theaction of' the/ spring 17 when thel contact 16is operated.

The energization of releaseinagnet 'R attracts the armature' member 18,and thus allows the contact member, 16 to fall by the weight of gravityand thus resume, its

original position. `The method of selective restoration 7 is here shownas' conditional upon the action of a car operator in Stopv ping the.carto,receive a passen er. This action will cause the operation wo arestor- C ing-switch, two, of which 'H and H' are "shown for each floorin Fig. 1,-'to correspond with the up and down push-button switches foreach floor.

At the right of Fig. 2 only one switch H 'is shown at each floor, tis-controlling, all

ing switch:

therup and down restoring circuits of its car. fClosure of the restoringswitch. may loe effected in various ways. The means may be varied tosuit different machinery or i11- stallations without laltering therestoring devicesx Following are descriptions of some "of the variousmeans for closing this restor- Fig. 3 represents a ycentrifugal 0r speeddevice of the well known automatic governor type, in which, when thespeed of ro'- tation falls below a predescribed minimum, the rod falls,carrying the contact 21 kwith it and making the required connection. f.F igf4 represents a contact member 24 held up from the contacts 25, 26by means of'the engagement of the lever 27 with one o'f the arms 22, 22of the operating orcontrolling device 23. A spring or gravitation willcause the contact 24 to drop when the elevator car is stopped, and thedash-pot 28 will delay this closure long enough to insurethat time fortaking -on passengers has v elapsed.

Fig. 5 shows a contact switch directly actuated by an electriccontrolling car switch. lVhen the handV lever'29 is in alneutralpositionas shown, the contact bar 30 makes connection between thefixed contacts 31, 32, thus making the desired connection.

Fig. 6 represents the wheel and lever device of a hydraulic elevator.Swinging the lever 33 to the right or left in the Operating positionscauses the arm 34 to be respectively lower or higher than the centralposition, and it is onlyin this latter position that contact 35 isFpressed into engagement with contact 36.@ l

F ig.' 7 represents 'a Contact switch closed by the brake mechanism.When the brake operates, the arms 37 lare pressed inwardly toward eachother, the pivoted lever 38 carrying contact 39 is forced downward, and

the desired connection is made between contact 39 and fixed contacts 40.

Fig. 8 represents a Contact closed by the action 'of the main valve of ayhydraulic elevator. To the valve vstem 41 which moves in the cylinder45 is connected the arm 42 carryingthe contact member. 43. When thevalve stem 41 assumes the stopped position, the contact member 43 makesconnection with the fixed contacts 44, as shown in the figure.

These various means for closing a circuit are shown-and vdescribed inorder that it may be evident that any convenient method may be adoptedto render my scheme of selective restoration applicable to the varioustypes fand kinds of elevators. In order that my invention may be`morereadily understood,`the action of the restoring switch H inIconnection-with an ordinaryIash signal system, will be explained.

Referring to Fig. 1, let it be assumed that a car C is in the travelingdownwar ly; a person at the floor marked 3 desiring to go downpressesthe button B on that floor, contact 'is made thereby, and whenthe car C nears the said floor the floor lamp A lights in the well knownmanner. The magnet N, preferably a low resistance series type, isincluded in the directional switch common wire, its action closing acircuit which lights the car signal lamp c. In this eXemplification tworestoring switches H and H are shown for each floor, one (H) for theup-going car, and the other (H) for the down-going car, to correspondwith the restoring magnets for switches B and B.' When the car op`erator opens the door to receive the waiting person, the switch H forfloor 3 is operated, thereby completing a circuit through thecorresponding restoring magnet R and returning the corresponding switch18 to its normal position.

It is evident that some action of a car operator, preferably that ofopening the elevator door, is necessary to operate the restoring switchH or H. Therefore, if for any reason, it. is ineXpedient` for a certaincar operator to stop at a given iloor, the passing of that floor willnot prevent the signal from appearing in subsequent cars until some carstops at the iioor,x or until some car operator gives the attentiondemanded by the signal. Fig. 2 illustrates how this same object may beaccomplished in substantially the same way as previously described,butdiffering in some of the details. The motor G receives current fromthe supply means and and an auxiliary source of current supply B isprovided for energizing the releasing magnets M and restoring magnets R.The commutator device comprises two sets of strip and segmentalcontacts' for the up land the down travel of the elevator car; F, L, J,K being the up contacts and F, L', J, K the down contacts, and the up'and down directional switches 11 and 12 are automatically operated bythe commutating device. `Follower contacts t and t', not shown in Fig.1, are for the purpose of closing circuits to the restoring magnets Rwhen the elevator car stops at a given floor. A switch WV in the carcontrols the operation of the motor G, the magnets E and E beingsuitably arranged to close connections to the motor G in thewell knownway to reverse the direction of rotation. The magnet la. is alsoincluded in the common wire of the two magfnets E and E and is energizedwhenever either of the latter is energized; thus the contact 63 makesconnection with the fixed contacts 64 when the magnet z is denergized,thus permitting a circuit to be closed through the contact t or t of thecommutator device, and through the restoring magl upper portion of itstrip,

net R correspondingto the floor. where the.

vstop is made. K a' A single restoringswitch H is shown at each floor inconnectio-n with the signal apparatus for the other car C (Fig. 2), in

which the operation of the same is similar to that rof the restoringswitches shown^ in Fig. l, with the. exception that only one switch isemployed for both up and ldown l@ travel ofthe car, the follower or t ofthe.

l commutating device connecting with the proper restoring magnet R whenthe car'is stopped. Observe that, as theswitches I-I are fin parallel,each one' performs .for its l5 car exact-ly the same function as theswitch 63 performs for the car at the-left, z'.' e'. it

keepsfopen the restoringcircuits ofthat ear While the car is running Themagnet N,

preferably of the low resistance type, is ineluded in series in thecommon wire for each of the floor lamps, and is energized when they arelighted, thereby closing a circuit to the car signal lamp `c aspreviously described. n y y 2,5, Figs. 9- and 10show (diagrammatically)the circuits of the elevator at the left of Fig.

` 2. 'Referring to Fig. 9, assume that the car is at rest somewhere .inlthe shaft. Now if the operator wishes to ygo down he throws 3a hislever IV as shown,'so'as to energize the motor-controlling.magnet ETThis, we will assume `will cause the elevator, start down. Closingpush-button switch B energizes the down setting-magnetM, which releasesits pivoted lever 50 and closes the connection between the source ofpower and the down lamp A: When the moving brush -T strikes that lampsstationary contact, it closes the circuit by way of circuit-shifting 4oswitch 12 and lights the lamp.` At the same time it energizes magnet N,which closes a local'circuit and lights the lamp C in the carf Throwingoperators leverNV has also 'fclosed the ,circuit through magnet h, whichhasnopened thesw'itch 63 which controls vthe.

restoring circuit-s'for that car. At themiddle of the figure isshown therestoring circuits.y When theoperator throws hislever,

`VV to the cent-ral position to stop his car, the

magnet h is` denergized, closing switch 63. The circuit is then closedfrom the source of power by way of circuit-shifting switch 11 ftostationary bar L and moving brush t',

, and as this will touch restoring contact F when the carv is at thefloor, the down lrestoring magnet R will be energized. This .of ,coursewill raise contact lever 50 and break the circuit through floor lamp A',and also d'energize magnet N which controls the car light, thusrestoring the car and floor signals to their normal condition.Circuit-shifting switches 11' and 12 are of course thrown from one sideto the other as thevcar reverses its direction of movement.

The corresponding circuits for the up direction will be evident. Thediagram is equally correct for the circuits' of the car at the right(for its commutator is exactly the same) except that in thediagramswitch 63 represents any one of the switches H, and magnet h isxomitted.i

-In Fig. 10 I have shown a more simplified diagram of the .restoringcircuits for -two floors.

for example, and R2 and R3 thedown and upl restoring'magnets for thenext floor. X L"represents the switch 63'lof Fig. 2, or any of theswitches of Figs. 3 to 8, or any, one

'switch Hof carC of Fig. 2. 11a is the circuit-shifting switch 1l orll.Then the car is running, switch' X is open. t and t ^are similarly movedby the car to `selectively control the restoration. When the switch Xcloses it will .close whatever-restoring circuit has been selected bythe moving brushes t, t.

LThe motor G is shown with the pulley sheave 66, about which passes thecable 65. The cable 65 supports the car C and the In this figure R, Rare the down f and up restoring magnets for the first floor,

weight F in the ordinary well known manner.- The switch S is for cuttingout the signaling system f or any elevator by preventing 'signal lamp cfrom beinglighted. The mag.-

net N is also cut out thereby and the floor signal lamps A and A for theparticular elevator car `will not be lighted. "`l

. I desire not to be limited tothe exact details as herein set forth, asit is evident that various changes may be made' by those skilled intheart 'without departing `from the spirit and scope of my invention; but

What yI claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the UnitedStates is l. In an elevator car signaling apparatus, the combination ofa signaling device, means for automatically and selectively restoringthe signal, and a centrifugal governor operated by the car andcontrolling -saidrestoring means.

2. In an elevator` car signaling apparatus.l the `combination cfasignaling device, and means for automatically and selectively r'estoringa signal governed by the stopping of a ca r. L v

3. In an elevator signaling apparatus in combination, ,signaling means,means for setting the same, up and down restoring circuits, ka normally`open switch, and means controlling the'same governed by the stoppingofthe car, and circuit-shifting switch izo -mechanism connecting saidfirst switch with said circuits alternately.

4. In an elevator signaling apparatus in combination, signaling means,means for setting the same., up and down restoring circuits, a lnormallyopen switch, means controlling the same governed by the stopping of thecar, circuit-shifting` switch' mecha- ,n ism connecting said firstswitch with said f vatOrs, the combination of signalingstations,y

circuits alternately, and means operated by the car and adapted toselect the proper restoring circuits.

- 5. In signaling apparatus, the combination' of devices for signaling acar to stop at a station, means for automatically restoring the deviceto its norma-l position governed by the stopping of the car, andcircuits and a signal for another car whereby/a car passing the stationdoes not prevent the cars follovving from receiving the stop signal.'

6. In electric signaling apparatus for ele-- signal devices in the cars,means for causing signals from said stations to appearin the cars onlyas they approach the corresponding signal station, and va device, forautomatically causing the signal to disappear when a car lstops at thestation from which the signal is sent.

7. In elevator apparatus, the combination'l matically denergizing thesignal in a car when that car stops in response toda signal.`

9. In an annunciator system for moving cars, a plurality of electricallyoperated sigA nals, circuits for said signals7 circuit holding j devicesfor saidrsignal circuits`P releasing means for said holding devices andmechanism governed by the stopping of a car at the point designated :bya signal lfor contro-lling said releasingmeans. p s 10. The combinationwith a movable car,

'a station indicatingsignal and .means for operating said signal, ofmeans governed by 1 stopping said car at the station designated by saidsignal forn canceling the same.

l1. In a signal system for a movable car, a plurality of signals,meansforoperating said` signals and means Uoverned byv stopping said,car forv 'indepen l entlycanceling the saidsignals. Y- l j i, Thecombination with a movable car, of a station designating signal, meansfor operating said signal and means for cancel'- linglsaid sig-nal, saidlatter means comprising a normallyineflective member moved in accordancewith the movement of said car, and a device coperatingvvithj said-membergoverned by the stopping of'said car.

13. The combination with -a movable car, of signals, means forpperatingsaid signals. and means for canceling said signals, said latter meanscomprisinga normally inelective member moved in accordance with themovement of said car, and a device coperating With said membercontrollable by the movement of the car.`

14. In an elevator signaling apparatus in combination, a car,electrically-operated signaling means, means for operating the samecomprising a passengers-button at each floor and mechanism correspondingto each button and set thereby, restoring mechanism comprising aselecting device moved corre' spondingly with the car whereby therestoring lmechanism is adapted Yto restore'all saidpassengers-button-set mechanisms in succession and correspondinglyvviththe movement of the car, a normally-open switch controlling saidrestoring mechanism and rendering it incapable of accomplishing therestoration of any of said;passengers-button-set mechanisms7 said switchbeing controllable bythe operator of the car and adapted when closed nto put said restoring mechanism in condition plish the restoration ofeach of said buttonset mechanisms.l

15. In an elevator signaling apparatus in combination, a car, signalingmeans, means Jfor operating the same comprising a passencorrespo-ndingto each button and set thereby, restoring mechanism adapted to restoresaid passengers-button-set mechanisms individually, a switch controllingsaid restoring such that the selecting device may accomgers-button ateach floorv and mechanism mechanism and when open rendering it incapableof accomplishing the restoration of any of saidpassengers-button-setmechanisms, and means operated by the starting and stopping of the ca'rfor opening andv i 4 closing said switch.

16. In any elevator signaling. apparatus iny combination, a car, signalsat' the floors, circuits for the same, means for operating the slgnalscomprising a passengers-butrton at cession as tlie car travels, meansoperating to limit the signals given to those corresponding tolthe'direction of movement of' the car, and a single signaling device carriedby the car and operated by'each of said floor signal c ircuits. 1

17. Inan elevator signaling apparatus in combinatiom a car, signals atthe floors, circuits for the same, ,means for operatingv the signals'comprising a passengers-button' at each door and a commutator operatinautomaticallyto close thefsignal circuits 1n suc- I cession as the cartravels, means operating tol limit the signals given to thosecorrespondleach licor and a commutator operating auto- .maticallytoclose the signal circuits in sucing tothe direction olf-movementl of thecar,

Aand a singlesi'gnaling device'carried by the .car and a magnet foroperating the same energized by'each of said floor signalcir-`r cuits.

18. In an elevator signaling apparatus in combination, signaling' means,means for setis running at full speed, 'a centrifugal gov-v setting thesame, up and :down restoringlcir-` l cuits, a Yswitch normally open`While' said car ernor controlling'the same governed by the starting andstopping of' the car, and circuit shifting switch mechanism connectingsaid rst switch with said circuits alternately.

ln testimony whereof, l have signed my twosubscribing Witnesses.

Witnesses 1914:, upon the application of vAugust .provement in SignalingApparatus,

Stations; samev page, line 28, after the may conform to thegcord ot thecase [smh] 'iCoireetons ign Letters Patent No. 1,109,950E

ERLEL. AUSTELT, H. BRADY.

i It is hereby certied'tliatin Letters Patent 'No.1E 1,1095950, grantedSeptember 8, y A Andreu, ofllrooklyn, New York, for an imi. errorsappear in the printed specification reduiring correction las follows:)Page It, line 17, for the vtord t"staton read l) i Word. same insertthe Word when; and that the said Letters' Patent should be read withthese corrections therein that the same in the Patent @meel ,lSigned'andsealed dips-29th day ot September, A., D., 1914.-

R. lF. Wl-llTEHEAD,

Actvlng Commissioner of Patents.

@USQLMMEPQE l,l09,950.-A'tg`us AAndra, Brooklyn, SrsNALrNo APPARATUS:Patent dated September .8, 1914. Disclaimer led Junel 21, 1922, by theassignee,

levator )Supplies Company, im. Enters this disclaimer: p 1(1) as toclaim 14,0 every 1 normally open switch? now called for in the icombination of ele'mentstherein claimed, `except suchas controllableindirectly by the ca r operator and closed automatically throughoperationot some car mechamsm which 1s operatedin the routine running ofthe car, and i @(2) as to claimsQ to 5' inclusive and 9 to l2 inclusive,eve

Ty means OI mecha;

n'isrn therein specified as governed by stopping the car except such as,after it hasoperated and caused the cancellation for one floor.requires, before it can again accomplish the s1gnal-cancell1ngfunction'for Yanother floor, some action of mechanism which takes placein consequence of the 1017er@ Gazette Jem er, 192e] y act of stoppingthe car.

y accesi ANniniN.` ,y c.

